Megaman: Shattered Planet
by Jyn-the-Raccoon
Summary: In Megaman X5 we know what happens if you save the earth, if you blow Eurasia to bits and stop it from destroying the planet. But what about when you didn't? Would it really be the end of all life on Earth? Take a peek inside and you'll find out.
1. Chapter 1

(A/N: Well here I am again after an extended vacation from fanfiction in general, but it does feel great to be back! I won't bore ya too much with the details and excuses, just know I'm ready to pursue this to the finish! Just this once I'll say if you could donate your opinion of this story in a review it will be greatly appreciated. There, no more begging from me! Now you can enjoy the story everyone.)

Chapter 1: After the aftermath

Everyone always said it was way too dangerous to hang out in the ruins by The Edge, that it would suck you right off solid ground and into the abyss of space. That didn't stop Rio, not for one second, there was just too much to learn here, roaming the deteriorated streets and crumbling alleyways of a long lost city he didn't know the name of. Currently the fiery red head was climbing a defunct escalator to the top of one of the tallest buildings resting in the ruins, hoping to catch a glimpse of the elusive sun, mostly blocked by the continent in front of them, their own fragmented piece of Earth farther away from the star than the other. No matter how he looked at it, Rio found it hard to believe that all these stray continents were once held together and formed an actual planet, he'd never seen one in tact before. Well, he'd looked at Mars through a telescope once, but it was so far away it didn't really count. And it had only been a hundred years ago, a hundred years ago today this city had still been standing, still inhabited, what he wouldn't have given to see that. Dodging moss and overgrowing plant life, Rio continued to the top of the decrepit tower. Achieving it a few minutes later, His feet slapped the pavement as he ran to edge, straining his neck to see over the very top of the other continent. It was just a little higher...just a little...there! The continent had turned just enough to let him see the very top of the golden star. This was the only time you could see the sun, the artificial sky would kick in around early morning, blocking out this incredible view. But just as soon as it had graced him with his presence, the continent turned again, shielding them from the sun once more. Sighing, feeling the one glance was just not enough, Rio turned and headed back towards the settlement where his home resided. Down and out of the ruins, past a cluster of trees, and into the vast prarie, houses cropping up as he reached the other side of a small hill. A slight breeze made the boy's yellow t-shirt and blue vest shift on his person, but felt smooth on his face. After thrity seconds of jogging, he arrived on the graveled main road that cut through the center of the village. Wood buildings cropped up on either side of the street, signs hanging above their doors, advertising their wares and services. At that moment, like a wave rushing over his head, Rio saw the artificial sky activate. Sighing, he headed home, a corner house halfway down the main road where it interescted a side street, of which there werent many. Making his way up the front walk, he slipped his way inside the front door, only to bump into something on his way.

"Hello Rio." a female voice said, sounding a bit intrigued and slightly annoyed. Rio recognized the voice immediately.

"oh, h-hi, Mom." He smiled wide, trying to mask how embarassed he was at getting caught.

"What were you up to at such an early hour?"

"Oh nothing, just doing a little stargazing." He answered, somewhat truthfully.

"Really? And exactly where were you doing this 'stargazing', hmm?" She raised an eyebrow, suspicious.

"Just at the tower..." He trailed off, beginning to sidestep past her, heading for his room.

"Rio, how many times do I have to tell you, going to the ruins is dangerous!"

"But Mom-!"

"You could've gotten pulled over the Edge by the artificial gravity!"

"Mom I'm fine! I just went to see the sun is all." He grumbled, crossing his arms.

"Just...don't go too far next time..." She sighed, smiling and hugging her son.

"Alright." He conceded, hugging her back a little.

"I'll see you after work ok? Bye."

"Bye." Soon after she left, Rio made himself a small breakfast; toast with jam and some milk, and then headed out again. This time with a different destination in mind. Turning the opposite direction down main street from where he'd come, he headed for a house about two blocks down, almost near the edge of town. He had started slowly, thinking it was no big deal, what Gerry and Gina had said last night. But as he thought about it more and more, the more he wanted to know, the more he had to know. And those same words echoed through his memory as he ran.

_"We found it. We finally found it!"_


	2. Chapter 2

(A/N: Hello again peoples! Second chapter up on time as promised! And if you don't know I am going to put upload dates on my profile, so theres no guessing when the next chapter is coming, I think it's more fair to you guys that you know when my next chapter is coming rather than checking every day. Anyway, I may not have any reviews yet, and I'm ok with that. I thank everyone for coming to read the first chapter, I'm happy with the story traffic if nothing else! The only other thing I have to say that I forgot to mention in the first chapter: I DO NOT own X, Zero, or any other canon characters or story I mention. I own my oc's and storyline, but thats it. Well, that's all from me, go enjoy the second chapter!)

Chapter 2: Finders keepers

Rio knocked on the door rapidly, unable to contain his excitement. After about twenty knocks, a familiar face opened the door. Gina Cartwright was a girl with unique tastes, so much so she always changed her hairstyle everyday to keep up with her everchanging moods. Today she was wearing her shoulder length, emerald green hair in two braided pigtails (think Pippi Longstocking, but with a different hair color). To match her yellow ponytail holders, she had donned a pastel yellow, quarter length shirt with blue trim, the blue trim matching the blue vest she had thrown over said shirt, khaki capri's and sandals. Sometimes Rio wondered how she ever had the time to make all those outfits. Her amber eyes lit up at the sight of Rio, half delighted, half mischevious.

"Well good morning to you Rio Maverick, what brings you to our humble home?"

"Gina, no fooling around, let me see this thing you found." Rio went right to the point, his curiousity killing him.

"Ok ok, Gerry told me you'd be itching to see, come on in." She motioned. Eagerly he followed at Gina's heels, practically breathing down her neck. Heading through their kitchen/living room area, they quickly descended into the basement, a singular lamp flickering in the small room. A wooden table covered by a blanket was the only piece of furniture besides the chest of drawers containing the family's vast collection of tools. The twins' father being a mechanic for the town, it wasn't surprising he kept so many at his fingertips. The only person that had been in the room before Gina and Rio entered was Gina's twin, Gerry. He was the complete opposite of his sister in every aspect imagineable. Gina was energetic and spontaneous, changing her look everyday and trying out new things. Gerry on the other hand, found solice in his predictability and schedule, along with math and the various sciences he enjoyed learning about. His emerald hair was cut simply and neat, hair above his eyes which were shielded behind glasses. He wore a sky blue t-shirt, jean shorts, and his tool belt that came with him wherever he went.

"Hey Ger, what'd you find? Looks big." Rio said, scanning the vaguely human looking outline of said object under the blanket.

"Big? This discovery is huge Rio! It could give us a real insight into what happened with the Eurasia incident!"

"I meant the actual size but ok, show me." Rio wanted to rip that blanket off the table so badly, it was making him squirm inside.

"Just show him already Gerry, he's been very patient and your taking your time." Gina chimed in.

"Ok ok! Here he is." Pulling off the sheet, Gerry revealed their discovery. Rio onky had to take one look to know who it was.

"It's...it's X... It's really him." He breathed, not believeing his own eyes.

"Without a doubt." Gina smiled.

"The genuine article." Gerry agreed. They all just stared for a little, not even able to comprehend what was before them.

"What are you going to do with him?" Rio inquired.

"I'm going to fix him, thats what I'm going to do."

(So yeah, its short, but I promise that after about the next two chapters they will get longer! Hope you all enjoyed!)


	3. Chapter 3

(A/N: PLEASE DON'T KILL ME! Yes I know I'm two days late, give or take a few minutes since its just past midnight, but having to register for school and work unexpectedly throws a person off! But I tried to make it up to you guys with an extra long chapter! Hopefully, more will be longer like this as the story goes on, but only time to tell. I see there are still no reviews, but I meant what I said and I said what I meant, so I'm not going to pester you nice people reading my story for reviews. I appreciate the story traffic, and that's enough for me {although if people did review me I would know the names of people to thank, but thats beside the point}. Anyway, on with chapter 3! Enjoy!)

Chapter 3: Second time's the charm

A few days after the twins amazing discovery, Rio was determined to make one of his own. He was currently gathering supplies for a day trip to the ruins, hopefully without his mother knowing. Packing some rope, a bottle of water, some dried goods like crackers and beef jerky, and some extra shoes (he had lost more than one pair to the ruins), he felt ready. Double checking everything, he headed out the door, but not before bumping into someone. Stepping back, his face lit up.

"Ichiro! Nice to see you!" He held out his hand to shake.

"Hey Rio, looks like your planning for a trip." The long haired blonde eyed his friends backpack.

"Just a little excursion in the ruins, wanna come?" Rio raised an eyebrow tauntingly, knowing Ichiro Yamamura of all people wouldn't be able to resist the offer.

"Wouldn't miss it." He shot back, knowing exactly what the red head was getting at. The duo had always been...a bit overly competitive when it came to finding treasures in their cherished ruins. Rio because it was a passion of his since he was a young child, Ichiro because he secretly one upping Rio and giving the treasures to his father, a scientist at the research outpost ten miles from town. As they headed down the main street, they greeted various neighbors on their way, trying to keep conversation to a minimum. The artificial sun was high in the cloudless domed sky, indicating they had started late and couldn't stay too long. Once the edge of town was achieved, each boy looked to the other, faces solemn and serious. "What are we looking for this time?" Ichiro asked.

"The remains of Zero." Rio answered singly, knowing it would spark up an interest in his blue eyed rival. And it did indeed, the other boy lost his serious stare just for a moment to shock.

"How can you be sure there are still remains to be found, Rio?"

"That's for me to know and for you to find out. See ya there, slowpoke." Rio winked playfully, taking off at his top speed toward the ruins. The race had commenced: who would be the first to find the second greatest discovery in history.

...

Ichiro didn't know how Rio had found out the location of Zero's remains, but he couldn't lose to him, the unprofessional looter that he was. So, in the interest of science, he had to win. The near edge of the decrepit city came quickly on the horizon, and soon both boys were in the thick of it, twisting and turning through the metal jungle (which was turning more into a natural jungle every day) towards their destination. Ichiro followed close behind Rio, but stayed out of sight, figuring he might as well let the clueless boy lead him right to the prize. As he shadowed him, the blonde took note when his rival pulled out a piece of paper as he hopped over an old girder. There was writing on it, but being at the distance he was, Ichiro couldn't make it out. Studying it intensely, Rio seemingly decided on a direction and continued on through the maze. After about another fifteen minutes of trekking, Ichiro began to feel a little wary of the intended destination of this trip, as it seemed like Rio was heading straight for the Edge, bypassing the ruins altogther. He had never liked the Edge, it spread a little shiver through his body just thinking about it. All the children that lived on the continent learned when they were very young that the artifical gravity acted differently there, malfunctioned because of the unsymmetrical shape of their home. Anyone who imched too close could get pulled over the Edge and slingshot out into space, having no way back in to the safety of the domed forcefield. Snapping himself out of the unpleasant thought, he felt his stomach drop as he watched Rio pass the last building of the ruins, the Edge a mere hundred yards away.

'Is he some sort of suicidal idiot!?' Ichiro questioned in his mind as he stood at a safe distance, near one of the buildings on the outskirts, watching Rio blindly follow the directions on his piece of paper. The boys eyes widened as he saw the red head had no intention of changing course whatsoever. The gap between him and the Edge slowly closed; fifty, forty-five, forty...

"RIO!" Ichiro finally opened his mouth, not wanting to be the person responsible for Rio's death.

"Oh! You found me I see!" Rio whirled around and called back, still competitive.

"Rio do you have a death wish!? Get away from there before you hurt yourself!" Ichiro cut to the chase, sending the message that he was done playing games.

"Ah hah! I finally know something the great Ichiro doesn't! What, your dad didn't tell you about what he's been hiding lately?" Rio taunted him as he inched ever closer to certain doom.

"What does my dad have to do with you being suicidal!?" Ichiro was beginning to get frantic, Rio had gone off the deep end, and was about to do so literally!

"Follow me and you'll find out!" Rio offered, now walking backward, but destination never changing.

"What are you talking about!? Rio get back over here before-!" He stopped as he watched Rio disappear as his foot touched the Edge. Ichiro stood there, dumbfounded at Rio's own stupidity. He imagined having to tell Gina and Gerry, Rio's mother about what he had let happen, what he could have prevented.

'What have I done...?' And just as Ichiro was about to break down (though he would deny it later), he heard a voice:

"Dude, you coming or what?" Looking back to the spot where his friend had disappeared, the blonde saw A disembodied Rio head staring at him, as if he were the crazy one. "Its a hologram Ichiro, don't be so surprised."


	4. Chapter 4

(A/N: Its me again! And I promised I'd be on time didn't? Anyway, here's chapter four, short again I know but I love ending on a cliffie and I couldn't resist the temptation :-P. But the action will pick up next chapter, so that's something to look forward to! Also, since school is starting Wednesday I will be having a more regular updating schedule. Unless otherwise stated on my profile, I will be updating every Friday for Megaman: Shattered Planet. Hope that cheers some of you up! So you guys only have to wait four days for the next chappie! Anyway, enjoy the story!)

Chapter four: Extraction point

Ichiro examined the hologram curiously. He had heard of them, but never had actually seen a working one outside the small trinkets they had at the research center. To think that there was one of such magnitude working perfectly here was mindboggling. Sticking his hand in and out of the illusion, he surmised it was safe enough, and slowly he stepped through. What he saw, first, was Rio tapping his foot impatiently, thinking his friend was taking too long.

"Are you afraid of a little illusion, Ichiro?" Rio taunted him.

"No, but weren't you afraid we would get caught? That our passing through would set off some sort of alarm?"

"Nah, the twins told me it was abandoned here anyway, I wasn't worried." He said, acting the picture of confidence. The twins! So that was how Rio had gotten his information!

'Figures, those two are always sticking their noses in official business.' He scoffed to himself. Ichiro then focused on where "here" actually was. Looking around, he saw they were in a long, dark hallway. The walls he supposed used to be white were now a gross yellow color, and he could only see about fifteen feet in front of him from the dim illumination of the hologram wall behind him. There was refuse scattered about the dirt covered tile floor, and the smell of mold permeated the place.

"So, where to next, navigator?" Ichiro asked of his friend, seeing as Rio would be the only one with anny sort of sense of direction in this place. Rio sighed, still not being able to push Ichiro's buttons with his teasing, even after numerous attempts over the years. Checking his piece of paper with Gina's crude instructions on it again, he oriented himself and turned around. Soon he began walking, Ichiro a few steps behind, through the darkness, careful not to step on any stray debris. They twisted and turned through the facility, and Ichiro finally broke the silence with a topic of conversation.

"So, why did you say my father was connected to this?"

"The scientists at the research facility abandoned this three years ago, and according to the data your father was the head researcher at this outpost. It was shut down after an outbreak of the Zero virus occured." Rio answered succinctly, taking another right down another hall.

"Then that's why they hid it, it was too dangerous to allow any more outbreaks." the blonde reasoned out. "So we are here for what?"

"Zero's armor, his DNA chip is the part that is contaminated, if we just grab the armor then Gerry will have most of the info he needs to rebuild them."

"Gerry would attempt something like that, crazy and unwarranted." Ichiro gave a sly smile, knowing it would agitate the red head.

"More like make him a hero! I don't get why you're so stuck up anyway, it's not like-!" Rio stopped immediately as he heard a faint sound echo through the halls, like a foot kicking metal.

"We are definitely not alone..." Ichiro whispered.

"This. Is. Bad." Rio agreed.


	5. Chapter 5

(A/N: Well I won't bore you with the details as to why I'm sort of late and just say unexpected business came up. Here's a longer chappie in return, hope you enjoy!)

Chapter 5: Dancing with the Devils

The boys continued to stay stolid, never flinching as they tried to determine where the footsteps were coming from and where they were headed.

'This way.' Rio mouthed and turned a corner, entering a room in the complex and shutting the door behind them as discreetly as possible.

"Who else could be here? And what do they want?" Ichiro thought aloud, but softly.

"It has to be an employee of the research center! Who else would know about this place?" Rio reasoned. They heard the footsteps again, this time they were sure it was more than one set. Ichiro would usually have agreed with Rio's assessment of things, before he listened to what he heard next.

"You said Zero would be in here!" a voice, a woman's voice, complained.

"He is in here!" A man's voice responded.

"Well then why can't we find him or his DNA chip?"

"Obviously they would have kept him locked up tight. We just need to find the central room and then we'll have the chip." The man explained, agitated. Both their feet started echoing down the hall again, away from the boy's position.

"Why would someone who knows the dangers of that chip go looking for it?" Ichiro posed the question, referring to Rio's earlier theory. The only response he got was a confused shrug on the red head's part. "Do your directions lead to the central room?"

"Yeah, so?"

"Were they headed toward it?"

"No way, they went completely the opposite direction." Rio shook his head.

"Then let's get in and get out before they come back." Rio understood and the two snuck out the door again, trying to be as stealthy as possible. They kept maneuvering through the maze of halls, always keeping track of the other pairs of footstep if they were near. Rio soon stopped in front of a door, skimming the text of his paper as he typed in the access code to the once top secret lab. The door began to open smoothly, but suddenly let out a loud groan in protest due to age.

"What was that?" They heard the man say, knowing they had blown their cover.

"We gotta do this quick." Rio muttered, heading over to the nearest computer and trying to access Zero's file. "Darn! I need a password." He scowled.

"You said my father used to be head of this facility?" Ichiro inquired.

"Yeah."

"Well then maybe I can help with that." the blonde stepped up to the terminal, entering in a password he had seen his father use many times for other things. The words "Acess Granted" flashed across the screen, giving them a list of options to choose from.

"I3Capacitors? Really?" Rio raised an eyebrow suspiciously.

"He's a little weird like that." Ichiro laughed nervously, acessing Zero's file and unlocking the safe in the wall where he was held. Behind them, slowly and majestically as if revealing the secrets of the universe itself, Zero was displayed for the both of them to see.

"I can't believe it..." Rio mumbled, barely audible near the end.

"No time to gawk, lets get his armor and go." Ichiro began unhitching the red armor from the torso, while Rio got the arms and legs. They saved the helmet for last and stuffed it all in Rio's backpack.

"Should we take the data chip? Just so those shady guys don't get it?" Rio wondered.

"That might be a good idea. We just have to make sure we don't touch it." Ichiro pulled his shirtsleeves over his hands and gently set the chip in a separate pocket in the backpack.

"Hey, what are you kids doing in here!?" The two boys whipped around to see a man and a woman standing in the door and glaring at them.

"Time to split?" Rio asked.

"Time to split!" The boys charged the couple, Rio sliding under the woman's legs and Ichiro sweep kicked the man then ran passed him. The woman began chasing them immediately, swiftly pulling out an energy blaster and missing Rio by inches.

"They sure mean business!" Rio observed. The maze of halls became a raceway, the boys sprinting with all their might to lose their pursuers and avoid being blasted. Soon they were getting close to their hologram entrance, having put a fair distance between themselves and the couple. They barreled through the fake wall and slowed to a stop, looking back for any sign of the pair.

"They obviously came in from another way, they don't know about the hologram." Ichiro said breathily, deciding not to stick around any longer and jogging back to the ruins. Rio quickly followed until they found a safe place to rest. After they paused to catch their breath, Rio's face was bright with glee.

"Dude, high five! We work so awesome together!" He raised his hand up for the said gesture of victory. Ichiro stood up and stretched, walking past his rival.

"We have more important things to do than celebrate." He replied.

"You are such a party pooper."


	6. Chapter 6

(A/N: Sorry. I'm late, I know. I hope that the promise of real action in the next chapter will tide you over until friday. Enjoy!)

Chapter Six: Split Operation

"Obviously the research center doesn't want him, so naturally we are gonna keep him for ourselves." Gina put her hands on her hips, clearly annoyed at Ichiro. The four of them were gathered in the twins' basement, arguing over where Zero should be kept.

"But it was also obviously a secret. Who knows how many people knew about it?" Ichiro said as a last resort, knowing his argument was weak.

"But would you risk exposing your dad if it was the wrong type of secret?" Gerry raised a curious eyebrow.

"Low blow Ger," Rio scolded him, "guys, he helped find Zero and helped me escape, he deserves some right to where Zero stays." He reminded them, deciding to play mediator before things got out of hand.

"How about this, what if I keep him in my personal lab, secretly, and keep you updated? How does that sound?" Ichiro suggested.

"...I can live with that." Gerry smiled.

"Take the DNA chip too, you probably have the only equipment that can properly contain it." Gina said, wary of the chip.

"Ok, now that that's settled, what about the people who were looking for that chip? I didn't recognize them, so they must be from another town on the continent. What could they want with it?" Rio thought aloud.

"Who knows? Maybe they were on a treasure hunt like you guys were." Gerry shrugged.

"With blasters?" Ichiro pointed out.

"Ok so maybe that's not it. But does it really concern us?" Gina asked.

"Well if they come looking for us with reinforcements it will." Rio added.

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it. The more pressing issue at hand is how Gerry is doing with X. I know he's itching to tell you." Gina changed the subject.

"So give us the info Ger." Rio urged.

"Here's the situation...I can't completely rebuild him as I had originally planned, but I do have a plan B."

"Which is?" Ichiro pressed him to continue.

"It's called the Link System. I can download X's program into a backup computer in the armor and have an analog, a person, pilot it while X gave them instructions." He explained.

"So it would be like...being X?" Rio's eyes went wider as he spoke.

"Eeeeeessentially." He replied.

"Count me in!" The red head cheered.

"Me as well. You need to have someone to make sure you don't blow the continent up." He gave a small grin.

"I'll send you the specs for Zero."

"This is going to be sweet." Gina smiled, seeing grins appear on all the boys faces.


	7. Chapter 7

(A/N: It's now midnight here so I'm too tired to discreetly beg for reviews. Just have fun with this extra long chapter.)

Chapter Seven: Test Run

Rio paced in his living room impatienly, checking the clock on the mantle of the firplace every thirty seconds, waiting for 2:00 to roll around. Pulling it's usual trick, time slowed to a crawl, making the wait agonizing for him. A month and a half had past since his meeting with Ichiro and the twins, the two boys mentioned working vigorously to develop and perfect Gerry's Link System for its first test drive today at the appointed time of 2:00. During that time neither of them let Rio know anything about the developments, Gina was also shut out of the loop as well, so the two uninformed friends spent a lot of time together during the month and a half.

Half of the time they'd spend their whole day trying to get into Gerry's lab, and most of the time the epically failed at doing so. The other half they spent scouring the outskirts of the town or near the ruins for the perfect spot to test drive the suits. Once they found a suitable spot (no pun intended) on an abandoned farm three miles away from town, they prepared a sort of obstacle course to test the various abilities of the armors. But since that only took two weeks, the curious pair were left to their own devices for the rest of the waiting period. And now, only an hour away from test time, Rio felt like this was going slower than the other month and a half had ever gone.

Deciding to try and focus on other things while waiting, he let his mind wander back to the mysterious pair in the abandoned facility where he and Ichiro had found Zero. He had mulled over it several times before, but it still didn't make any sense to him. Everyone knew how much trouble the Sigma virus had caused, and Zero's chip was a carrier of said virus, who in their right mind would risk their sanity for something so destructive?

Rio awas also suspicious of the couple's lack of identity. The research facility held records of everyone on the continent, but after a quick and discreet search, Ichiro reported that there was no picture on file that matched either of them. While this did support the long held belief that there must be life on other fragments of former Earth, how did they get here in the first place? And how did they know about the hidden laboratory where Zero was?

Too many questions had presented themselves without any logical answers, and Rio's mind became cluttered with fanciful speculation. Shaking his head to clear it, he looked to the clock reluctantly, hoping he had wasted more time on his thoughts then he thought he did. When his face met that of the clock's, it read 1:45.

'Man, first I'm ready an hour early and now I'm close to being late!?' Rio thought of the irony as he grabbed his backpack and sped out the front door, feel his heart beat faster then it ever had in his life.

...

"Wow, could we get a closer resemblance or what?" Gina remarked as her and her twin examined the two test drivers of the Link System in front of them, Ichiro and Rio for Zero and X respectively. And it was pretty much true, both being about the same height and build as the orginals, and the fact that Rio's short hair was covered up by the helmet while Ichiro's hung out behind him completed the look.

"I know what you mean, I feel like I'm seeing them in person!" Gerry chimed in as he calibrated the wireless transmitters in the suits to his laptop.

"Come on guys, enough jokes and lets get on with the testing!" The red head tapped his foot impatiently, not wanting to delay what he felt was the most important moment in his life.

"Cut him some slack, if Gerry doesn't set the Link to the right intensity, our brains will fry from stress." Ichiro informed his test mate of the reason for the delay.

"Oh." Was his only reply before he went back to tapping his foot. A few moments of anxious silence passed as Gerry continued to work, until he finally spoke up.

"Ok, are you guys ready?" The male twin confirmed as he adjusted his glasses.

"As we'll ever be, hit it." Ichiro g ave the ok, silently as eager as Rio.

"Then here we go! Initiating Link squence in 5... 4... 3... 2... 1... Start!" the three others watched as Gerry's hand launched toward the ENTER button, hitting it with a click of finality, as if after this moment nothing would be the same.

Immediately the twins noticed the change. Both test subjects seemed to tense up and their eyes closed tightly, as if they could feel the information seeping into their brains. They stood there for a few moments that felt like infinity, and Gina began to get a little worried. But before she could protest, the boy's eyes shot open simultaneously, and Gina could have sworn they were glowing brighter than they had just minutes ago.

"The Link has been successfully established, and is within tolerable levels. How do you guys feel?" Gerry looked up from his laptop.

That question should have been a very simple one for Rio and Ichiro to answer, but at this point it was probably the most complicated. In all honesty, no one was sure what was going to happen when the Link System was activated. Whether the two reploids would be reincarnated in the armor so to speak, or the program would just be a simple search engine database that pulled up relevant information know one knew. But now that they were actually experiencing it, there was only one way to describe it. In those few minutes, Ichiro and Rio had "relived" the two Maverick Hunter's lives, since everything was carefully recorded in the backup computer. Every battle, every mission, every thought, every emotion the reploids had ever experienced the two boys could recall as clearly as their own memories. It was like becoming another person, being absorbed into their lives and their memories.

"Better than ever!" Ichiro replied enthusiastically after a while.

"Is that you Zero? I mean Ichiro?" Rio finally came to life as well, trying to keep the two sets of memories in his mind separate.

"X, uuhh, Rio? Wow that's going to be hard to keep track of." The blonde hung his arm over the back of his head, a bit of confusion on his face.

"Is everything ok?" Gina asked. After they explained what happened, Gerry replied,

"Well then this obstacle course should be a piece of cake, since you remember doing this stuff like a million times already! Head on through whenever you're ready. "Up for a little competition?" Ichiro eyed Rio with a bit of a challenging grin. Rio returned the favor, smiling as well.

"You're on!" The blue-clad boy replied as he lowered his center of gravity and dashed forward, toward the first obstacle. Ichiro immediately responded, catching up to the other boy in an instant. The first obstacle was a dash jump over a six foot wide gap, which both cleared easily and quite gracefully, still neck and neck. Rounding the corner of the course, they headed for another jump obstacle, only this time they had to clear five consecutive jumps without stopping. Rio had to slow down to time it right, which put him behind Ichiro as they bounded quickly over the jumps, but he regained their tie as they came out of it. Next was the wall jump, which were fifteen foot high planks of wood placed next to each other and sturdied by supports. Kicking off the gound with incredible speed and strength, both executed their respective wall jumps flawlessly. Rounding the last corner to the home stretch, the last obstacle was to eliminate three dummies each before moving on. Without even having to give it a second thought, Rio transformed the armor's left arm into X's signature buster, and fired. Ichiro, also with inhuman speed, whipped out his sword and charged the dummies. Before either of the twins had even blinked they both had hit all three of their targets and were dashing furiously to the finish, only thirty yards to go.

"I'm not going to let you beat me this time!" Ichiro yelled, launching himself into the air far ahead of Rio.

"And you think I'm going to let you!?" Rio called back, dashing forward and quickly baseball sliding toward the end, also aiming his buster up at Ichiro and firing a shot. Ichiro blocked it at the very last second, and in the same moment they both crossed the finish line. When they turned to the twins, they saw the identical astonished faces they had, eyes bulged with mouths agape, and laughed a little.

"So who won?" the blonde deftly sheathed his sword so to speak, and Rio reverted his buster to an arm. there was no reply from either of their friends, they stayed silent. Waving his hands in front of their faces, Rio spoke up

"I think we broke them."


	8. Chapter 8

(A/N: sorry for being late, i fell asleep while typing chap 8 last night. But next chapter we have an action packed fight scene, which I am not very good at writing. Hopefully it will be as good as i think this chapter came out! And also thanks to The Hightech Redneck for giving first review! I really appreciate it! Enjoy the chappie!)

Chapter 8: unexpected visitors

"Hello twins, are you guys okay?" Ichiro asked as he waved his hand in front of their faces.

"Y...yeah, we're fine." Gina shook off the trance like state she was in. Gerry seem to wake up as well, beginning to stare at his laptop intently.

"how do you guys feel?" he wondered looking them over with a concerned face.

"Great." Rio smiled.

"I should think so, your readings are off the charts!" Gina inform them, ecstatic.

"She's right, everything from physical strength to reaction time has doubled, even tripled, from normal standards." The boy agreed, furiously typing on his laptop.

"Well...now that we have this power, what are we going to do with it?" The blue-armored teen wondered aloud. The group looked at each other a bit awkwardly. No one had really ever thought this far, what were they going to do with it.

"I was thinking space travel, confirming the existence of life on other pieces of earth, like my father has been suspecting." Ichiro offered. "With some modifications these suits would be perfect for it." This made Rio's mind wander back to the two people in the abandoned facility, were they after the same thing? But if so, why were they so hostile?

"I say we should lay low. Those people from the abandoned lab might still be looking for us. We don't want any unwanted attention." Rio reminded the group.

"Yeah they might still be looking for you guys and-!" Gina was cut off in mid-sentence by a large explosion coming from behind them, sounding alarmingly close to their hometown nearby.

"What the heck was that!?" Gerry exclaimed, shocked from the loud noise.

"It couldn't have been the Research Center, they're not conducting any explosive test." the blonde ruled that out.

"Then what if..." Rio's stomach churned. What if it was that couple? Had they already found them? Did they already know who they were where they lived? Another explosion shook the air and the ground underneath their feet. Gina winced at the sound.

"Whatever it is we should go check it out. It might be connected to the suits, and if it is as powerful as it sounds you two are the town's only hope." Gerry pointed out.

"Just because we have these suits you think were equipped to deal with a crisis?" Ichiro raised an eyebrow at him.

"Oh come on, what happened to that Hunter confidence you just had two minutes ago? Technically you guys are seasoned pros. This should be a piece of cake."

"They're right, we are the only hope the town has and it's our responsibility to make sure everything is alright. Let's at least take a peek okay?" Rio pleaded a little, trying to be reasonable. It was understandable Ichiro was nervous about getting involved, seeing as in reality they were inexperienced, but in his eyes this was Rio's first real chance to do some good, however big or small the task.

"Okay, but it's evacuate everyone first no questions later got it? No reason to get cocky just because we think we are Maverick Hunters." the boy in red armor warned his friend.

"Have it your way." Rio smirked.

...

"Can you guys hear me? Give me a signal." Gerry's voice came through the duo's headsets.

"Loud and clear." Ichiro grunted as his booted feet pushed off the ground with tremendous power, launching him into the air.

"Do you guys have a visual on the bogey?"

"Nope, just a bunch of dust." Rio informed. It was true, the whole town was covered in a thick, undulating cloud of the stuff.

"Don't these helmets have some sort of infared ability?" The blonde wondered as the two landed in front of the dust cloud.

"They do, but I don't have enough time to unlock it, the encryption is to complicated. You'll have to go in blind."

"Well try anyway! It's way too dangerous to go in there without-!" Ichiro's rant was cut short by a powerful wave of air that whipped down the main street, clearing the town of the dust cloud.

"Well that's not good." Rio observed. At the other side of the street, two figures stood. One, decidedly female to Rio, looked like a mixture betwwen a human and a snake. A cobra like hood extended from her head, her body covered with scale shaped armor that had an emerald sheen. If she had legs, you couldn't tell, because the armor from her torso down was shaped like a snakes tail. The second looked male, and stood about a head taller than the woman. His armor looked more streamlined, which made sense once they notices the sharp segmented wings on his back. His boots and gloves looked like deadly claws, and his helmet had a visor that was shaped like a hooked beak. Rio and Ichiro automatically scowled, these must be the jerks that attacked their home. Fueled by rage, Rio was about to shout a taunt at the two enemies, but the man moved faster than he could blink his eye. In that one instant he was in Rio's face, a sinister grin etched across his own.

"Welcome to the neighborhood." He whispered, kneeing the red head in the gut at the same time. Rio was launched back at rocket speed, slamming into the house behond him, twenty yards away from where he was originally standing. Ichiro just stood there, completely stunned to silence.

"Guys!?" Gerry yelled through the headset, obviously having heard the commotion, "What's going on, is everything ok!? GUYS!?"


	9. Chapter 9

(A/N: yes, a post that is on time! I feel so proud! And of course it's the one I had the hardest time writing. It's so weird, I love writing action fics but actual action fighting scenes I have trouble with, like this one, but hopefully its not too terrible. Tell me if I need to add more detail or whatever, because I'd be happy to oblidge! Enjoy the chappie!)

Chapter 9: Maiden Voyage

Rage. Pure rage was what guided Ichiro's sword as he swung mercilessly at the man, faster and faster as he went. He had initially gotten the man once in the back after his initial assault on Rio, but now they were in a heated battle, Ichiro advancing and the man blocking as fast as each of them could. The blonde felt like his arms were burning, how could they do this? How could they just waltz in and do that to Rio? To their town? The man finally went on the offensive, attempting to strike with one of his claw toed boots, hovering in the air to do so. Dodging as fast as possible, his armor clad torso still got nicked.

"Did I anger you, little boy?" He sneered, using his speed and high ground advantage to start backing Ichiro into a corner.

"Nice work, Shryke." The woman called from far off, pleasure things were seemingly going well.

"Yeah, I'll make nice work out of you after I'm done!" He taunted. Their blows were almost to fast to see now, both combatant's arms just a blur in a flurry of slashes, blocks thrusts.

"Don't leave me out of the party!" Rio's voice called out of the blue. Ichiro, not able to take his eyes off his opponent for a second, grunted

"Finally decided to join us huh?"

"Well I thought I'd get up and dance a little, and I can't leave my lovely dance partner waiting, can I?" Rio's hand immediately changed to a buster and fired a quick shot at Shryke's side to give his friend a chance to get out of the corner he was in. He then turned his attention to the woman who had decided to stay out of the battle for as long as she could.

"I was wondering when I'd get the chance." She smirked. Rio advanced, but warily, seeing as he didn't know what kind of weapon she possessed.

"Do I get the pleasure of knowing your name?" He raised an eyebrow.

"Naga, Naga Nebuloid, and that's Shryke Supernova. I guess you realize your reputation precedes you, X? Or should I say Rio Maverick?"

"A little bit of both actually." He replied, readying his buster, trying to hide the growing light from his charging it. He eyes flicked to said buster, and immediately pulled out her own gun, firing a barrage of shots in his direction. Rio made a splitsecond decision to take a hit to be able to dodge the others and save his charge shot. The appropriately fang shaped bullet about as long as his forearm hit him in his shoulder, exploding on contact. It very nearly threw him off balance, but he was still able to jump high enough to clear the rest of the bullets. Without a second to spare he fired his charge shot at Naga, seeing her eyes widen a bit. Doing what he felt like he had done a million times, he dashed, following the path of the giant energy bullet that aimed at his opponent to ensure the next shot was point blank. But what he did not anticipate was that her repeated firing at the bullet would dissipate it, and her leftover shots would hit him square in the chest. He turned it into a backflip and landed on his feet but it took a lot out pf him.

"I thought you'd be a little more challenging, X! A three year old could pilot that thing better than you." She let her pride seep through without hesitation. Glancing for the smallest moment at Ichiro, Rio saw that he wasn't doing very well either. It didn't turn out like either of them planned. These two weren't raiding the town for the chip, they had wanted to draw the pair of boys out in the beginning, to get right to the source. And they obviously had experience piloting their respective armors, they were prepared. Ichiro had started to get deeper cuts in his armor, in parts wherethere was only fabric to cover the joints he was even showing blood. Shryke was a master swordsman, that was for sure.

"Just tell us where the chip is boys! Then we can call this little spat off." Ichiro's opponent pointed out.

"Like I would hand it over to the likes of you!" The red armored boy pushed off the ground with all his might and prepared to bring his sword down on Shryke's egg head (bird pun lol). Shryke flew up to meet him in midair, claws at the ready. Ichiro's eyes shined with the look of a sly fox, he had been expecting his opponents move. Twisting his body just enough to avoid his claws, Ichiro fell behind the man, whipped out his sword and jammed it into Shryke's back, dismembering one of his wings. They both plummeted to the ground, almost tripping Rio as he backpedaled from Naga's shooting. He ducked behind a nearby house, hoping it would force her to come and find him or move forward at the very least. It sickened him that she was beating him by just standing at one spot. Remembering the test run from earlier, he wall jumped to the top of the building and began hopping rooftops. She spotted him about twenty seconds later, but he already had had plenty of time. Buster charged, he launched himself into the air, the arc of his jump taking him directly over Naga's head.

"Eat buster!" He screamed, pulling the trigger. The energy bullet propelled itself toward the woman like a comet, gaining speed as it went. When it impacted the ground, plumes of dust came up, like before they had arrived at the town, covering Shryke and Ichiro as well, the latter of which was limping away at a slow pace. Now all to do was wait, wait to see what happened when it cleared.


	10. Chapter 10

(A/N: Yes I skipped a week of posting, I'm really sorry about making you all wait on a cliffhanger, but it was a long weekend, and I couldn't help but take advantage of it. To make it up to you I'm going to upload another chapter tonight and one on monday in addition to the regular friday one. Hope you forgive me! Enjoy the chapter!)

Chapter 10: The Journey is Half the Fun

It took about another thirty seconds for the dust to clear enough so that Rio could see what was going on. He saw that he had created a small crater where Naga was standing, but there was no sign of her. His immediate reaction was that she had gotten away, but there was nothing he could do about it right now, not with his friend injured. Running over to Ichiro, Rio also noticed that their battle wasn't a total loss since Shryke seemed to be knocked out cold.

"You ok Ichiro?" he asked urgently.

"Urgh...I'll live," the blonde grunted. Rio slipped his body under his friend's arm, supporting him.

"Hey Ger, you still there?" Rio called over the com link as they walked toward the outskirts of town.

"Yeah, I've been patiently waiting here the whole time! What happened?"

"Well the lady got away, but Shryke seems like he's unconcious, so the authorities will be able to pick him up. Ichiro's leg got injured in his fall, so he'll need to be treated. We're heading back right now." The red head summed it all up. Rio heard people exiting their houses behind them and knew it would be disasterous if someone recognized them. Grabbing both of Ichiro's arms he slung them over his own shoulders, bounding away.

"No one saw you guys right?" Gina's voice came over the speaker.

"Not unless they could see us through the dust." The injured boy responded.

"Just get back as quick as you can." Her twin told them abruptly.

"Roger that."

...

Rio smiled a little at his friend as he dozed. Ichiro had always been like this, easy to fall asleep even after the most exciting things had happened. But here he was, out like a light as soon as he hit the makeshift cot in the old barn the twins had set up. They had removed his armor, dressed his leg (which fortunately was just a bad sprain and not a break), and as soon as his head hit pillow he was out. He certainly deserved it though, sword fighting like that took a lot more effort than shooting a blaster. There was light tap at the doorway that caused him to spin around, seeing it was Gina.

"Come on in." He motioned, slipping off the last of his armor, the helmet. She was carrying the same small first aid kit she had when she was helping his sleeping friend.

"Sorry I couldn't get to you sooner, I had to run home and get refills for the salve," she explained.

"No prob," the boy waved it off as he sat on a nearby bale of hay. She came right over, opening the box and applying the cream to his cuts. Gina, who would have normally been talking nonstop, was unusually silent, her head bowed and focused on her work.

"You ok?" her patient wondered, concerned.

"Fine..."

"Don't lie to me Gina," he said a bit sternly. Suddenly she looked up to him with wet eyes, tears slowly traveling down her cheeks.

"It wasn't supposed to happen like this. The suits were supposed to help, you shouldn't have gotten hurt..." Her arm came up to wipe her face, trying to stop the water works.

"Hey hey, it's ok. We both came back alive, and the town leaders will definitely get some info about what happened from Shryke. We'll find Naga and beat her, and it'll all be over," Rio tried to reassure her.

"I'm afraid it won't be that easy Rio," Gerry walked into the barn.

"What do you mean?"

"While you guys were fighting I noticed that Shryke and Naga had come up on my radar. And soon about six other dots appeared, although they sent a signal they were outside my range. There are a lot of other people who have suits like you guys do, who knows what they want? This isn't going to be a walk in the park."

"What do we do?" Gina sniffled.

"We find them before they find us," Rio answered, serious. "We make the first move."


	11. Chapter 11

(A/N: Here is chapter 11, successfully uploaded the same day as chapter 10! You guys are getting another one tomorrow, so I hope you're excited, I know I am! Enjoy!)

Chapter 11: Beginning the Journey

The whole town was in an uproar from the attack by Nebuloid Naga and Shryke Supernova. People became very suspicious of the research center, seeing as it was the only source of technology on the continent. Rebuilding projects had to be scheduled, supplies had to be provided, and most of all order had to be restored. After they all went to their parents to show them that they were ok, the four kids headed back to the barn with supplies for their journey. In all the commotion it was a perfect time for them to slip away, unnoticed. Rio arrived at the barn last since he was in charge of gathering as much food as possible for the trip.

"Sorry I'm late, had to raid my moms stash of dried food under the floorboards," he trudged through the barn door, carrying four backpacks.

"That's fine, it took us just as long to transfer all my data," Gerry was tinkering with a device on his wrist, as was Gina.

"Transfer your data to what?" Rio walked over to peek at the gizmo.

"This portable computer Ichiro snagged from the lab. It has more power and I'll be able to track the other suits better."

"But you won't be able to travel into space with those! We will need to leave the continent like you said, that won't protect you," Rio failed to see the practicality in the computer watch.

"We're going to cross that bridge soon, first we have to get set up at home base," Ichiro chimed in.

"We should set up at the ruins! It would be a perfect spot!" Rio got excited.

"That would be a fantastic idea, you'd be able to get better reception with the height, Ger," Gina smiled.

"That's the first place they would look for us though..." Gerry pointed out how illogical it was.

"Come on Ger, pleeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaassseeee? We can just hide in the basement levels or something, it's the perfect spot!" Gina tried to schmooze her twin.

"What about you Ichiro, what do you say?" Gerry asked his fellow scientist.

"I'm fine with wherever."

"...ok, fine."

"Whoo!" The red head and the girl cheered for joy. Rio and Ger took the heavy stuff while Gina helped Ichiro to walk. It normally took about fifteen minutes to get to the ruins at a good paced walk, so at their slow pace it took at least double that. And having to navigate the rough terrain of the ruins made it even longer. Gerry and Rio finally decided to go on ahead while Gina continued with Ichiro.

"...I heard you crying," the blonde commented out of the blue.

"Oh! Th-th-that was nothing! I-I-I was just-!" she tried to explain.

"I won't let him die, if that's what you want."

"N-no! That wasn't-!"

"Not everyone is as oblivious as the red head. Just saying." They continued walking in silence, heading toward the tower. After another ten minutes of navigating, the finally passed through the threshold of the tower. Rio was there, standing on top of a desk, surveying the first floor. He turned back to the other three, smiling wide, he said,

"Welcome my friends, to the new base of the Maverick Hunters."


	12. Chapter 12

(A/N: Spoilers farther down the paragraph! Anyway, here is the third chappie in my little catching up session, next one will be on friday/saturday like normal. And as I've been blitzing the pages of this story over the past three days I've realized that It might not be so clear as to what I'm doing here. Well Ichiro and Rio are pretty easy to see who they parallel I would hope, but the others I wasn't so sure. So I'll just tell you guys! Gina is supposed to parallel Alia frim the X series, not in appearance but more in her role. Gerry is the same way, as he's paralleling Signas, which we'll see a LOT more of later trust me. I also set it up like a standard X series game. 8 robot masters with an extra hard final boss level at the end. If I just ruined that for anybody I'm sorry, but please read anyway and enjoy!)

Chapter 12: Preparation

A month had passed since the small team of Maverick Hunters (an omage to their reploid predecessors) had moved in and set up HQ in the ruins. Gerry and Ichiro were diligently working on space suits for the twins, leaving Gina and Rio to their own devices. This particular day the pair were sitting on top of the tower mapping out a route to the other suit users, or "Mavericks", as they dubbed them.

"So we've made the top three discoveries of the century in as many months, it makes one wonder..." Gina trailed off.

"What do you mean?" Rio raised an eyebrow.

"Well, if we could do all this, why didn't the research center do it and tell us already?"

"Well they found X and Zero, but they didn't pursue the line of research. The question is...what did they know that we don't?" he looked out across the horizon.

"Well, that's the million dollar question, as they used to say," she followed his line of sight. A moment of silence came over them, only for lack of how to continue.

"Anyway, we should finish this up so we can make dinner, I'm starving!" Rio stretched his hands over his head.

"Ok then! Well we have seven Mavericks left spanned over four continents. One, most likely Naga, left on our continent, while the others are spread out at two to a continent, meaning we'd have to make at least three trips into space. Take a look at the map," she moved her wrist computer's hologram screen so both of them could see.

"If we're in the middle then its simple, we hop there and hop back. I'd rather have a break between beating bad guys anyway."

"Hey, who says me and Ger won't be out there kicking butt when the suits are finished?" the girl gave the boy a friendly shove.

"You guys won't have the same experience me and Ichiro have," Rio crossed his arms and smirked.

"You mean your **suits **have, you just got it all crammed into that airhead of yours. And if you won't train me then I'll just ask the smart blonde inside," she stuck her tongue out at him.

"Are you saying I just got handed everything on a silver platter?" his tone seemed backbiting and harsh.

"Rio you know I didn't-!"

"I know, ugh. It's just...I have to live with some pretty horrible memories after that whole link thing...I didn't have time to think about it at first, but now even just seeing certain things make me sick inside."

"I remember learning about history at the school house, it probably doesn't compare to living it at all though," The emerald haired girl took his hand in hers. "But we're here for you, I'm here for you. Don't give in and shut us out, just promise me that."

"I promise," he gave her fingers a squeeze and smiled.

...

Meanwhile, Ichiro and Gerry were making the schematics of the suits for the twins, and Gerry was noticing something peculiar about the blonde.

"Hey, are you alright? You seem like your brooding more than usual," he blurted out as he adjusted his glasses.

"Why do you want to know?" The long haired boy practically growled, not meeting the other boy's gaze.

"Because if I'm not mistaken, my sister is the reason."

"..." Ichiro effortlessly pretended that he hadn't guessed correct and ignored him, continuing to tap on the keys of his wrist computer.

"That's the dead giveaway right there. You must really like her then." It was at that moment Gerry recieved what Rio commonly dubbed Ichiro's "death glare". Gerry cleared his throat a little and continued: "Well, you could try flowers if you're interested, she's always liked violets. Figures it's one of the hardest to find right?" And that seemed like all Gerry had to say on the matter.

"What was your idea for the oxygen tanks again?" Ichiro changed the subject without hesitating. The other boy rolled his eyes, he might as well have been talking to a brick wall.

"You guys ready to break for dinner?" Rio strolled in from the direction of the stairs with Gina at his heels.

"Yeah, I think so," the green haired boy smiled to himself.


	13. Chapter 13

(A/N: Sorry this is so short! Admittedly I had to make it a filler chapter to lead up to mare action next time, so enjoy and look forward to it! And also thanks to .3950 for the reviews and inspiration! Its always appreciated!)

Chapter 13: Speaking and Serpents

"You done yet?" Rio tapped his fingers on the tabletop as he watched Ichiro and Gerry put the finishing touches on the suits for the twins.

"Give us fifteen more minutes and we can do a test drive," His friend replied as he pushed his glasses up from their low resting point on his nose.

"More like a half hour Rio," Ichiro corrected, limping over to the tool box and picking up a miniscule screwdriver. It had been six weeks since he injured his ankle, but the blonde still had a bit of a limp, not able to put his full weight on it yet.

"I bet you're as antsy as I am, huh Rio?" Gina commented as she stoked the fire that was cooking their dinner in the corner of the room.

"Yeah I am! Defeating all these Mavericks is going to be a lot easier with four people instead of two."

"Have you ever considered the possibility that we won't have to fight some of them?" Ichiro posed the question.

"That would be nice, the less conflict the better," Gerry chimed in.

"But what are the chances of six other suits with the same energy signatures as Naga and Shryke are friendlies?" Gina pointed out.

"It does seem unlikely..." Gerry admitted.

"What I don't understand is what they're after. I mean, they could just as easily done a stealth mission and stolen Zero's DNA chip from us. Why did they engage us like that?" Ichiro wondered aloud.

"Because they're the bad guys. Over estimating is what they do best!" Rio laughed at his own joke. "But seriously, maybe they didn't think we'd be as prepared as we were."

"Well the only reason anyone would want Zero's chip is to release the Zero Virus, right? They want to the Virus to threaten the world like Sigma did back then," Gina made it sound obvious.

"It doesn't seem like it's that simple to me, Gina," Gerry shook his head.

"Well whatever they're up to we have to find out quick. If we cause some inter-continental incident, I'm blaming you guys," Ichiro's tone conveyed complete seriousness, but the other three knew he was joking. As the conversation drew to a close, the two scientists git back to work. The minutes dragged on for Rio, there wasn't enough for him to do around here. After a silence that seemed like forever, a gasp came from Gina's lips.

"What is it?" He inquired. The girl turned to the red head, he could see the fear in her eyes.

"Naga is on the move."


End file.
